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MARY'S VISITATION
(St.
Alphonsus di Liquori)
Whoever desires graces must go to Mary; whoever goes to Mary is
sure to obtain what he desires.
A home that has been visited by some well-known personage is
considered fortunate, both because of the honour such a visit brings it
and because of the advantages that may be expected to follow. But still
more fortunate is the soul that is visited by the Queen of the world,
the most holy Virgin Mary, for Mary cannot help filling that soul with
grace and virtue.
The house of Obededom was blessed when the ark of God visited it,
"And the Lord blessed his house" (1 Par. 13:14). But those persons who
receive a loving visit from the living ark of God, Mary, are enriched
with much greater blessings. "Happy is the house which the Mother of God
visits, " says Engelgrave.
Take, for example, the home of St. John the Baptist. As soon as Mary
entered it. She heaped graces and blessings on the entire family. That
is why the feast of the Visitation is frequently called the feast of
"Our Lady of Graces".
We shall endeavour to show that the Mother of God is the treasurer of
all graces. The subject will be divided into two parts. In the first we
shall show that everyone who desires graces must have recourse to Mary.
In the second, that a person who has recourse to Mary should be
confident of receiving the graces he asks for.
When the Blessed Virgin heard from the Archangel Gabriel that her
cousin St. Elizabeth was six months
pregnant. She was inwardly enlightened by the Holy Spirit, and
understood that the Incarnate Word, Who had become Her Son, wished to
manifest the riches of His mercy to the world by imparting the very
first graces to all the members of that family. So without any
delay, according to St. Luke, "Mary arose and went with haste into the
hill country" (Lk. 1:39).
Rising from the quiet of contemplation and leaving the solitude She loved, Mary
immediately set out for the home of St. Elizabeth. And
because "charity beareth all things" (1 Cor. 13:7) and cannot brook any
I delay, without a thought for the arduousness of the journey, this
tender and delicate young Virgin set out immediately to cover the 75
miles.
The distance from Nazareth to Jerusalem is about 70 miles; from
Jerusalem to Hebron about 19 miles; from Jerusalem to Ain Karim about
4.5 miles. The city of Judea in which Zachary lived, is now generally
believed to have been Ain Karim.
On reaching the house, Mary greeted Her cousin: "And She entered
the house of Zachary, and saluted Elizabeth" (Lk. 1:40). St. Ambrose
notes that it was Mary who greeted Her cousin first. The visit of
Mary, however, bore no resemblance to those worldly visits which often
are no more than mere show or a display of empty courtesies.
Mary's visit brought the family an increase of graces. As soon as
She entered and greeted Her cousin, Elizabeth was filled with the
Holy Sprit. and St. John was delivered from original sin and
sanctified. As a sign of his joy and an indication of the grace that he
had received through the Blessed Virgin, he leaped in his mother's womb. St. Elizabeth herself attests to this: "The moment that the sound of
Your greeting came to my ears, the babe in my womb leapt for joy" (Lk.
1:44).
Bernardine de Bustis, too, remarks that it was by Mary's salutation that
John received the grace of the Divine Spirit which sanctified him: "When
the Blessed Virgin greeted Elizabeth, the sound of Her words entering
Her cousin's ears descended to the child, and by virtue of them he
received the Holy Spirit. "
It is clear then that these first fruits of the Redemption all passed
through Mary as through a channel namely, grace to the Baptist, the
Holy Spirit to Elizabeth, the gift of prophecy to Zachary, and many
other blessings to the whole household. These are the first graces to
our knowledge, that the Eternal Word granted on earth after His
Incarnation. It is perfectly reasonable to hold, therefore, that God
henceforth made Mary the universal channel, as St. Bernard calls Her,
through which all other graces would pass to us.
It is quite right, therefore, to call Mary the treasury, the
treasurer, and the dispenser of Divine Graces. The is what the venerable
Abbot of Celle calls her: "The treasury of God, the treasurer of graces."
St. Peter Dami an calls Her "the treasury of Divine Graces"; St. Albert the
Great, "the treasurer of Jesus Christ"; St Bernardine, "the
dispenser of graces "; a learned Greek quoted by Petavius, "the
storehouse of all good things". St. Gregory Thaumaturgus observes that Mary is said to be
full of
grace because "the whole treasury of graces was hidden in Her. " Richard
of St. Lawrence declares that Mary is a treasury because God has placed
all gifts of graces in her as in a vault from which He dispenses mercies
and favours to all His servants.
St. Bonaventure speaks of the field in the Gospel in which a treasure
is hidden and which should be purchased no matter how great the price:
"The kingdom of Heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field; he who
finds it hides it, and in his joy goes and sells all that he has and
buys that field" (Mt.l3:44) He says that this field is Mary, in
which is hidden Jesus Christ, the treasure of God the Father, and in Him
the source and fountain of all graces.
St. Bernard declares that the Lord "has deposited the fullness of all
graces in Mary, so that we may know that if we have any hope, any grace,
or anything salutary, we have all this from Her. "Mary Herself assures
us of this when She says: "In Me is all the grace of the way and of the
truth " (Ecclus. 24:25). That is, in Me are to be found all the graces
and blessings which you men are capable of desiring in your lives.
Yes, sweet Mother and our hope, we are convinced, says St. Peter
Damian, "that all the treasures of Divine Mercy are in Your hands."
Before St. Peter Damian, St. Ildephonsus asserted the same thing even
more forcefully. Speaking to the Blessed Virgin, he said: "O Mary, all
the blessings God has determined to grant through Your hands; that is
why He has committed to You all the treasures of grace." St. Germanus
also maintains that no grace is dispensed to anyone except through the
hands of Mary: "No one is saved, except through You; no one receives
a gift from God, except through You."
St. Albert the Great beautifully paraphrases the words of the angel
to the Blessed Virgin: "Do not be afraid, Mary, for Thou hast found
grace with God" (Lk. 1:30), by saying: "Do not be afraid, Mary, for You
have found, not stolen, grace, as Lucifer tried to do. You have not lost
it, as Adam did. You have not bought it, as Simon Magus tried to do. But
You have found it, because You desired it and looked for it. You have
found uncreated grace" - that is, God Himself Who became Your Son -
"and with it You have found every created good."
St. Peter Chrysologus confirms this thought when he says: "This great
Virgin and Mother found enough grace to restore salvation to all men."
Elsewhere he repeats this thought and says that Mary found a grace so
plenteous that is was enough to save everybody: "You have found grace,
but how much? More than enough to rain down on every creature like a
downpour."
Richard of St. Lawrence makes this comparison: "God made the sun, so
that it might diffuse its light throughout the whole world; He made
Mary, so that She might dispense all Divine mercies to the world. "
St. Bernardine adds: "From the time that the Virgin Mother conceived the
Divine Word in Her womb. She obtained a kind of jurisdiction, so to
speak, over all the temporal manifestations of the Holy Spirit; to this
extent, that no creature can obtain any grace from God unless it is
dispensed by this tender and compassionate Mother."
We may conclude this point with the words of Richard of St. Lawrence
who says: "If we wish to obtain any grace we must have recourse to Mary,
the finder of grace. She cannot help obtaining everything that She asks
for Her servants." He borrowed this thought from St. Bernard who said:
"Let us seek grace and let us seek it through Mary, for whatever She
asks for She obtains, and She cannot he thwarted. "
It fallows that if we desire grace, we must obviously go to this
treasurer and dispenser of graces. This is the will of God, the Giver of
all gifts. St. Bernard asserts this categorically when he says: "For
this is the will of Him Who is pleased that we should have everything
through Mary. "Note the word "everything". We we say "everything ",
we exclude nothing.
But because confidence is necessary to obtain graces, let us
consider how confident we ought to be when we appeal to Mary.
(to
be continued in our next issue)
SCOTLAND IS HEATHEN
The Pope said that Scotland is no longer a Christian country but is
ineffect a spiritual wasteland.
The pontiff's bleak assessment of
Scotland as a benighted land whose people are largely unacquainted with
God came in a key address to Scottish Catholic bishops who visited
Rome at the beginning of March. The Pope told the bishops: "We may observe that in Scotland, as in
many lands evangelised centuries ago and steeped in Christianity, there
no longer exists the reality of a Christian society.
"That is, a society which despite human weaknesses and failings,
takes the Gospel as the explicit measure of its life and values.
"Rather, modern civilisation, although highly developed from the
standpoint of technology, is often stunted in its inner depths by a
tendency to exclude God or keep Him at a distance."
The Pope concluded by ordering the Scottish bishops to spread the
word of God more urgently. He wants to see a marked improvement in the
country's spiritual status.
A growth in nationalism is thought to have resulted in more
kilt-wearing north of the English border, but the proportion of Scots
attending Church between 1983 and 2001 dropped from 33% to just 23%.
Over the same period those who said they were Catholics nearly halved
from 22% to 12%.
Keith O'Brien, the Archbishop of St. Andrews and
Edinburgh, agreed with the Pope in his gloomy assessment of Scotland's
spiritual health.
"I completely endorse the view of the Pope that Scotland has become a
post-Christian society," he said. "The concept of holiness is today
sadly lacking in the light of our land."
Even the former Lord Chancellor of England, Lord Mackay, who is a
Presbyterian, agreed:
"It would be true to say that Christian religion
in Scotland is not followed with the devotion of years past," he said.
"I think we are missing the spiritual dimension of our lives."
The Pope
told his bishops to concentrate on trying to bring young Scots closer to
God. He accused the media and entertainment industry of confusing young
Scots about what was most important in life.
"The powerful forces of the media and entertainment industry are
aimed largely at young people, who find themselves the target of
competing ideologies which seek to condition and influence their
attitudes and actions," the Pope said.
Peter Howson, the leading Scottish painter who became a born-again
Christian two years ago after a lifetime of alcoholism and hellraising, said: "I do agree with the Pope. I do think there is a moral
decline. Advertisements I'd picked out as something that's causing
people to morally degenerate . And there is a complete lack of young
people in church; it's all old and middle-aged people."
IVF MOTHERS ABORT
'SPARE' BABIES
After fertility treatment, the unwanted foetuses are destroyed by
lethal injection.
Dozens of women expecting twins or triplets after having fertility
treatment are choosing to have one or more of their unborn babies
aborted, i.e. killed figures reveal.
A report by the Office for
National Statistics shows that 49 foetuses were destroyed in the womb by
lethal injection in 2001. Most were normal and healthy.
Most of the 40 women, who had the abortions, became pregnant after
having IVF or other fertility treatment, which carries a much higher
risk of multiple pregnancies.
The figures have reopened a row over selective termination,
highlighted in 1996 by the case of Miss B. who decided to have one of
her healthy twins aborted because she said she could not cope with two.
The Human Fertilization and Embryology Authority is now threatening a
crackdown on IVF clinics which implant more than two embryos.
Authority spokesman Ann Furedi said: "We wish the risk of triplet
births reduced. The best way to do that is to reduce the number of
embryos routinely transferred.
She said that since 1990 the number of women having selective
terminations, had remained constant at between 30 and 40 a year.
The procedure is pet formed by just 'four or five ' doctors in the UK;
many will not do it either because they do not have the expertise or for
ethical reasons.
Foetuses are terminated by a lethal injection of potassium chloride
to the heart, and are left in the womb to be broken down by the body.
Mrs. Furedi said the procedure was not without risk, and suggested women
would only go through with it for genuine medical reasons, rather than
simply choosing to have fewer babies.
Multiple pregnancies are far more dangerous for both women and babies
than single pregnancies. Many doctors argue that there are good medical
reasons for carrying out selective abortions in some cases, particularly
in older women or those at high risk.
Of the 49 babies terminated, 23 had abnormalities, and the remaining
26 were terminated for the sake of the mother's "physical or mental
health".
By law there must be a medical reason for a termination. But in
reality some doctors will sanction abortions for the sake of the
mother's 'mental health' if she says she does not believe she could
cope.
The statistics do not record how many babies were conceived naturally and how many were the result of fertility treatment, but the HFEA
accepts that most will have been the result of fertility treatment.
In many cases, women will have conceived several babies after using
drugs which stimulate the ovaries into releasing several eggs at once,
all of which can end up being fertilized naturally.
Others will have been conceived through IVF, in which eggs are
removed and fertilized in a laboratory before being implanted in the
womb.
Anti-abortionists want tighter rules on the number of foetuses that
can be re-implanted in IVF procedures, but doctors say the figures
involved are tiny and increased regulation would make little difference.
Professor Jack Scarisbrick, chairman of LIFE, said: "This is
particularly barbarous because human life which has been deliberately
created is then destroyed in a quite arbitrary way, usually by stabbing
the nearest child.
"The IVF industry created this procedure of selective termination,
probably to protect themselves against litigation from people who only
wanted one child. It is a most cynical unconcern for life."
Professor Lord Winston, Britain's best known fertility specialist,
advocates re-implanting just two embryos in IVF patients because:
"Putting back too many embryos and then forcing patients to even
consider selective reduction is ethically, medically and emotionally
wrong."
An opinion poll recently carried out among 11-year old
school-children on behalf of a charity, found 25% of them, i.e. one
quarter, had already engaged in sexual activities. The sex education system in England has much to answer for!
THE SADNESS THAT IS ENGLAND
Political correctness in England is out of control. Consider this: we
have councils that decreed that hot cross buns must be off the school
menu in case the cross upsets non-Christians.
Schools across Britain were ordered by local authorities to abandon
the ancient tradition of serving hot cross buns at Easter so as not to
offend children of non-Christian faiths.
An official of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets said: "We are
moving away from a religious theme for Easter and will not be doing hot
cross buns."
Ann Widdecombe, the Conservative MP and former shadow home secretary who is also a Roman Catholic convert, described the ban as
"appalling and absurd". "These people are silly assess, " she said.
"It
would appear that we should know about everyone else's culture apart
from our Christian tradition. It seems that anything that comes from
an ethnic minority is fine, while anything Christian is wrong.
"What can
be more innocent than a hot cross bun? There is a no more fun-way to
explain the Christian tradition to a child and it is not as if eating a
hot cross bun automatically makes you a born-again Christian. "
The
Muslim Council of Britain called the decision "very, very bizarre". A
spokesman said: "This is absolutely amazing. At the moment, British
Muslims are very concerned about the war with Iraq and are hardly going
to be taken aback by a hot cross bun.
"Unfortunately, actions like this can only create a backlash and it
is not very thoughtful. I wished they would leave us alone. We are quite
capable of articulating our own concerns and if we Muslims find something offensive, we will say so. We do not need to rely on other people
to do it for us.
"British Muslims have been quite happily eating and digesting hot
cross buns for many years and I don't think that they are suddenly going
to be offended. "
Last year, the Food Standards Authority named hot cross buns as the
healthiest option for those who wanted to indulge themselves at Easter.
On a weight-for-weight basis, the buns were found to contain the lowest
amount of sugar and fat as well a having the highest fiber and lowest
calorie content. A spokesman for the Church of England said that there
was no reason why any school should stop serving hot cross buns. He
said: "I see nothing wrong with anything which encourages children to
remember that it is Easter time. Easter has its own special symbols and the hot cross bun is one of
them. People who do not want to eat the buns do not have to. "
He added: "It is difficult to understand how anything which is ancillary to the celebration of Easter can create so much offence. "
ENGLISH PRIME MINISTER
RECEIVES COMMUNION
The Prime Minister received Communion from the hands of the Pope during
his visit to the Vatican, it has been reported from Rome.
Tony Blair, an
Anglican, had an audience with Pope John Paul II on 22nd February and
attended Holy Mass on the following day with his wife and their three
eldest children, all of whom are Catholics.
A Jesuit liturgist from one of the Pontifical universities confirmed
the story. It is said the Vatican's Secretariat of State granted a
special dispensation for Mr. Blair to receive Communion on the grounds
that there is no Anglican church for him to attend in the Vatican.
(There are, however, three Anglican places of worship in the centre of
Rome.)
The Revd. Jonathan Boardman, Chaplain of All Saints, an
Anglican church in Rome, said: "It could be significant. This little
stone could start an avalanche.
"The granting of dispensations becomes
highly charged to those of us to whom they aren't granted."
In Britain, it is permissible for a non-Catholic in a mixed marriage
to receive Communion under guidelines set down in 'One Bread One Body '
a 1998 Catholic teaching document. But it states that, even in mixed
marriages, "Eucharistic sharing can only be exceptional." Circumstances
for receiving Communion might include the baptism or confirmation of the
couple's child.
Canon Martin Reardon, one of the presidents of the Association of
Inter-church Families, said: "We are delighted. It is progress. We
would hope that the guidelines will develop to meet the pastoral needs
of inter-church families."
However, another Anglican source in Rome declared: "There are too
many exceptions being made. It's a rising tide. This demonstrates the
Pope's keenness to get on, doing the little things that can be done
rather than the big things."
The Prime Minister's office stated that Mr. Blair's trip, in which he
discussed the prospect of war with Iraq, was a "purely private visit",
and declined to comment farther.
GOVERNMENT URGES ORAL
SEX EXPERIMENT
A Government-backed course is encouraging pupils under 16 to experiment
with oral sex as part of a drive to cut rates of teenage pregnancy.
Family campaigners believe that the course, called "A Pause", is
having the reverse effect by exciting the sexual interest of children.
The scheme, which has been pioneered by Exeter University and is
backed by the Department of Health and Education, trains teachers to
discuss various pre-sex "Stopping points" with under-age teenagers.
It
aims to reduce promiscuity by encouraging pupils to discover "levels of
intimacy", including oral sex, instead of full sexual intercourse.
More than 100,000 children are now taking the course at one in every
thirty secondary schools. It forms part of efforts to tackle Britain's
teenage pregnancy rate, which is the highest in Western Europe.
Robert Whelan, director of the Family Education Trust, said he hoped
that the Sexual Offences Bill, which is going through the House of
Lords, would lead to the course being banned. A provision in the Bill
would make it an offence for anyone to "arrange or facilitate the
commission of a child sex offence. "
He said: "I don't think anyone believes that teaching pupils about
oral sex will stop them having full sex; it is more likely to make them
want to try it, and it does not protect them from sexually transmitted
diseases. "
John Rees, programme manager for "A Pause", said he was keen to teach
children that "it is acceptable simply to hold hands" and to discover
different levels of intimacy.
"We make it clear that there are many ways to manage relationships;
that it doesn't all have to be about full sex, " he said. He added
that he was "very worried" that the Bill would end the scheme.
Lynda Brine, a teacher from a Don-caster comprehensive who recently
attended a training day for the course, wrote in The Times' Educational
Supplement that she was primed to deal with detailed questions about
oral and anal sex." I was amazed. Are these really the sort of questions
to which we as a profession should be responding?"
"There was no framework for talking about responsibility or the
emotional side of relationships. By following this course, I feel that
teachers are implicitly supporting under-age sexual activity."
BOOKS
Readers have drawn my attention to
the following:
1. Change of Address:
Carmel Books
P.O. Box 40
Wellington
Somerset, TA32-9WG
Tel./Fax.- 01823.664.751
2. Recommended Reading:
"She Shall Crush Thy Head" (by Stehphen Mahowald)
can be ordered from
Sr. Dorothy
Peart,
35 Hampden Retreat,
Balsall Heath,
Birmingham B.12-9TB;
cost: £8 incl.p&p; cheques payable
to "Community S.H.S.J. "
3.
"Get Us Out Of Here "
by the contemporary Catholic mystic Maria Simma; her experiences with
the Holy Souls in Purgatory. Cost:£13 incl. p&p from Credo Books Chapel
Place, Lismore, Co. Waterford, Ireland; Tell FX: 353-585.4162.
4. "The
Devil's Final Rattle. " by Fr. Kaamer; try bookshops.
AN EXPERIENCE IN SAN
DAMIANO
I, L.T. from Belgium, am a widow, and affirm before God the following:
Ever since Pentecost of 1974, lam an "apostle " of Our Blessed Lady
of the Roses. I had my first supernatural experience on 16th October,
1974, the tenth anniversary of Our Lady's first apparition at San
Damiano, Italy.
I went together with a lady, her husband, and a religious to the
prayer night at the Shrine at 22.00 hours. In front of the entrance of
Mama Rosa's house was parked a large French car; a woman was sitting in
it. She was facing the site with its little paradise garden, and
signaled us to approach her. So we did. She then told us that she had
arrived the night before, that she was almost blind, but that she had
seen Mary with the child Jesus the night before, taking a walk in the
little paradise garden of the site.
Of course, we were skeptical, Mary
taking a walk with the child Jesus in the garden of the site! And the
lady was almost blind! A trick of the eyes, shadows?
Still, after our prayers we kept a tiny ray of hope that the lady may
not have experienced a kind of illusion. We knew that Mary was often at
the Shrine and manifesting Her presence in different ways and through
various graces.
It was almost midnight, when we finished our prayers. The lady was
still sitting in the car parked in front of Mama Rosa's house. We
approached her saying that we had not seen anything unusual and had not
been as fortunate as she had been.
I was leaning against the door of the
car and facing the little paradise garden. The night was very dark. We
used a torch to reach the Shrine and the site.
Suddenly I have this wonderful vision: Our Blessed Lady was standing
at the pear tree, holding the baby Jesus in Her right arm; standing at
the same place where, today, a small cushion is placed. Mary wore a large mantle. Both, Mary and the Baby Jesus were dressed
in a wide, white vestment, covered in stars. Both were wearing a golden
crown. A beautiful, heavenly light enveloped them.
I could not control
myself, and shouted:"I see Our Blessed Lady standing by the pear tree! "
The lady, who accompanied me, stood with her back to the garden. She
turned around and said: "I can see the two of them also." I asked her
to describe her vision to me. It was identical with mine. I was
infinitely happy, and thanked Our Blessed Lady profusely for this
wonderful grace.
My husband had been suffering from cancer of the intestine. Since he
was not a very religious person, I implored Mary during my visit in 1977
to save his soul. As an exception, I was given permission to spend the
night from March 24 to March 25 praying in the little paradise garden.
It was the Vigil of the Feast of the Annunciation. I thank the nurse,
looking after Mama Rosa, for letting me come into the house during the
night to take some food and a cup of coffee that I had brought with me.
In the afternoon of March 25, 1977, after the official prayers. I
remained kneeling at the fence of the paradise garden to admire the
statue of Mary. I prayed, and whilst looking at Her, I gained the clear
impression that Her face and Her heart . . . took on a human form; she
became animated. I pressed my face close against the fence
and found that Mary was smiling. Then I heard some pilgrims say. "Look,
how beautiful Mary is. She is smiling at us!"
I will never forget Mary's beautiful smile!
(taken from "Maria Heute).
"PROSPERITY IS THE
PROMISE OF GOD"
(Laura Peek)
Greediness is next to godliness, according to worshippers at one of
Britain's fastest-growing Churches.
More than 8,000 worshippers a week flock to services at the Kingsway International Christian Centre in an old warehouse near Hackney
Marshes, East London.
It was founded 17 years ago by Matthew Ashimolowo, the center's
pastor, and claims to be the fastest growing Church in Europe with a
total membership of about 12,000. It runs a range of services from televised preaching in Africa to an internet
chatroom for singles.
Worshippers are encouraged to pray for wealth. Sermons delivered by
Mr. Ashimolowo, a Nigerian-born convert from Islam, have titles such as
"101 Answers to Money Problems " and "Sweatless Wealth".
Prayers
include sentiments such as. "Ask the Lord to open your eyes to that
which shall be profitable. "
Worshippers are mostly Afro-Caribbean and most contribute a tenth of
their income to the Church. Scores of security guards, wearing black
suits and earpieces, patrol the compound for Sunday service. I was not
allowed to attend.
Outside, one member of the congregation, Steve Eyamba, 44, a lorry
driver, said: "It is part of our worship to pray for prosperity; that is
the promise of God. It is also part of our worship to give money to the
Church. It is good to give the money if it is used well, if it is sending food
home to Africa. "
KICC had an income of £7.4 mill. in 2001, of which £6.5 mill. came
from "tithes" and other offerings from worshippers.
Its commercial operation includes selling videotapes, music and
books, and its assets include the 9.5 acre Hackney site, where it plans
to build a £22 mill. complex, including a hotel and a 10,000-seat
church.
The Church is under investigation by the Charity Commission over
the "possible misapplication" of funds, and is under the financial
control of a receiver and manager.
NAIVE CHRISTIANS ARE
DELUDED BY
'GRAB IT'
GOSPEL.
Thousands of Christians in Britain are being deluded by a new style of
preaching that promises untold wealth to the believer whose faith is
strong enough, 'according to a report.
Followers of the so-called prosperity gospel, known by its cntics as
the "blab it and grab it gospel", are encouraged to believe that it is acceptable to pray for
material wealth.
An authoritative report by the Evangelical Alliance, an
umbrella organisation for Britain's evangelical Churches, raises
concerns about teachings that if the believer gives a sum of money to
the preacher, God will multiply it by a hundred times or more in favour
of the giver.
Preachers use mailshots, television, and churches to persuade
Christians that, by giving them money, believers will not only get out
of debt, they will also become rich.
Churches have traditionally repudiated wealth in favour of a modest
lifestyle. The prosperity gospel plays on an equivalent belief that
traditional religion will ensure fertility, abundance and longevity.
It is proving attractive to wealthy Christians in the West,
particularly in America, because it assuages their consciences. Some
preachers teach that material blessings, along with physical health, are
confirmation from God of a righteous and holy lifestyle.
Some of the poorest churchgoers are said to be deluded into believing
that, if they give what spare cash they have to a particular preacher,
they will receive the money back "one hundredfold". But it is then the
minister who becomes rich, often flaunting his wealthy lifestyle of
proof of how well the prosperity gospel works.
The report says that prosperous, charismatic preachers can replace
Christ as the object of adulation and admiration.
The prosperity gospel developed in America after the Second World
War, its proponents teaching that wealth and health are not only good
and godly but the inalienable right of every believer. Preachers did not
merely ignore the examples of St. Francis and Mother Teresa, they
condemned them, teaching that poverty was the work of Satan.
"Lacking the traditional British embarrassment about money, Americans are more likely to see wealth as something to be invested and
exploited, " the report says. "The movement has been an unabashed
advocate of material prosperity and this has naturally invited the
charge that it promotes a lifestyle and ethos fundamentality at odds
with the values of the kingdom of God. Analyses of the movement abound
with anecdotes about luxury cars and Rolex watches. The emphasis on debt
reduction in prosperity teaching is clearly a response to a serious and
widespread social problem."
The prosperity gospel has proved particularly fertile for leaders
among black-led churches, among the fastest-growing churches in the
world. One recent survey showed that more than half of all churchgoers
in London are black or Asian.
The prosperity gospel became a cause of concern among the evangelical movement in the 1990's because of the activities of Morris Cerullo
World Evangelism, which had offices in this country and was affiliated
to the Evangelical Alliance.
Members of the Evangelical Alliance were alarmed by his fundraising
methods, particularly when he allegedly linked the level of donors'
contributions to his own ministry with the extent of God's blessing on
the donors' lives. The concern was about "the suggestion of so automatic an equation between material offering and divine favour. "
Under pressure from the Council, Mr. Cerullo resigned from the Alliance
in 1998. The report was commissioned by the Alliance partly as a
response to this, but also out of concern that the huge expansion of the
prosperity message in America was about to be paralleled in Britain.
Already, rapidly expanding black Pentecostal Churches in Britain are
being strongly influenced by preachers from Nigeria, where believers
have proved particularly susceptible to prosperity teaching. In
addition, preachers often use Christian channels on cable and satellite
television to raise money for themselves by preaching that what the
believer donates to him and his wife, God will magnify a hundredfold.
The prosperity gospel shares the conviction held by many Pentecostal and
fundamentalists that the world is in the final
days before the Second Coming and the "rapture", when the faithful are
lifted directly to heaven.
The report notes similarities with pagan superstition that "what you
say is what you get". Preachers teach that the believers must convince themselves that God has already made them a millionaire, preferably by
giving money to the preacher himself. If the person fails then to become
rich, it is because their faith was not strong enough.
The study "Faith,
Health and Prosperity" was carried out by the Evangelical Alliance
Commission on Unity and Truth among Evangelicals. Andrew Perriman, the
editor, left Jamaica at the age of eight with his mother and two of his
sisters to live in Kentish Town, North London, and went on to become a
pastor within the New Testament Church of God, one of Britain's
fast-growing black Pentecostal Churches. He said that the prosperity
gospel was reaching people as much as through satellite and cable
television and other direct means as through the churches.
The following
is an indication of how the "grab it" gospel creates Bible loopholes:
The founding Bible text for the prosperity gospel is Mark 11, 23
where Jesus says: "Truly I tell you, if you say to this mountain: 'Be
taken up and thrown into the sea, and if you do not doubt in your
heart, but believe that what you say will come to pass, it will be done
for you."
St. Paul's statement in 2 Corinthians 8:9 is taken literally. "Though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so
that by his poverty you become rich."
Texts such as Proverbs 6:2: "You are snared by the utterance of your
lips," are used to teach that illhealth and poverty are the believer's
own fault, and that a Christian who prays for wealth and gives all his
spare cash to the minister and who then remains poor has been ensnared
by Satan.
Where gospel texts appear to contradict the message of the prosperity
gospel, such as in Mark 10, where Jesus told a rich young man to sell
all his possessions and give to the poor, a grammatical loophole in the
text is used to argue that Jesus did not in fact tell him to give all
the proceeds of the sale to the poor, but was simply telling him to turn
his solid assets into liquid assets and give some away.
GOD OF ABRAHAM, ISAC AND
JACOB
Scripture tells us that God made His Angels "winds and flaming fire"
(Hebrews 1:17). Angels have a Divine Appointment to watch over, guard,
and guide us. Sometimes the presence of angels is witnessed as great
clouds of smoke or experienced as the lovely fragrance of flowers or
burning incense. Angels speak to us in dreams, too. These phenomena are
the loving Creator's little gifts to boost faith. All people do
experience the effects of Angel Power, even though many are not yet
consciously aware of the presence of the angels.
The universal understanding regarding Angels is that their
inspirations lead us to virtue. However, we need to cooperate with
virtuous inspirations. Each positive good act lifts us to a purer awareness of Truth. Normal people seek happiness. Some achieve it, others do
not. Every action has consequences that either benefit or deter from
the personal quest for happiness. True happiness is rooted in
faithfulness to Truth, no matter the cost. It is the splendour of
Truth alone that brings peace, joy, and love to human beings. The splendour of Truth is light.
David is a famous international finance lawyer of Jewish origin. His
mother had a powerful and hidden prayer life that David rarely speaks
about.
Once, a precious document was lost that involved many lives and
millions of dollars. David was frantic. He was responsible for the
safekeeping of the original document. Everyone in the New York firm
where he worked, and colleagues on two continents were quietly helping
David reconstruct events in the hope that the document would surface.
Without the document, David's reputation and career were finished.
Finally desperate, David decided to seek refuge in a synagogue and
find solace in the God of Abraham, Isac and Jacob. He knew of the power
of God from the Old Testament. He found the synagogue of his youth. He
only entered when he believed no one would see him. David prayed as
his father had taught him. He prayed fervently for the retrieval of the
lost document. He left as he entered, quietly, carefully, making sure
that he was not seen.
David became desperate; the document had not surfaced. Several days
had gone by, no sign, no indication that he was going to be rescued from
this traumatic experience. He went to bed wishing he would not wake up.
That night, David had a wonderful dream. He saw his mother. She was
not old as she had been at her death. She was young and quite beautiful.
How happy she was! Seeing her so blissful caused David to experience the
elation that little children know so well when real happiness is
attainable. "Mother, how happy I am to see you!" he exclaimed in the
dream. She was bugging him and swinging him in the air and kissing his
face and curly hair just as he remembered her doing when he was a tiny
boy. He was laughing, and she was laughing with him. How loved David
knew he was!
"My little son, " his young, beautiful mother suddenly interrupted
their loving play. "Call the central post office. They are holding your
document. "
David awoke with a start! Was the dream true? A message from the God
of Abraham? David had no knowledge of why the central post office had
his document, but he was certain to find out, whether it was there. It
was difficult to wait until morning.
Finally the doors of the post office opened, and David was there. His
vital document was in a batch of misaddressed mail scheduled to be
destroyed the following week.
Was it his mother David saw in his dream or was it an angel? God permits
angels to take on corporeal shape when it is part of His Will for the
wellbeing of His children. They come to us in ways we are able to
comprehend.
David's problem became a blessing. It brought him the opportunity
to worship, adore, and petition the Great God of Abraham. A reward was
the renewal of his memories of childhood love. A joy was the shared
concern and efforts of his friends who joined in his sorrow and searched for his lost document. God is never outdone in generosity.
The Great Commandments are recognized, in varying degrees of awareness, as the Cosmic Rule of the Great God of Abraham.Whom Jesus
introduced as Our Father (Mark 12:29-31). Jesus explained:
"If you live
according to My Teaching, you are truly My Disciples; then you will
know the Truth, and the Truth will set you free. " (John 8:31-32)
God's
Commandments, the great cosmic rules, are contained in all the sacred
books. They are written on the hearts of all people. Those who obey God
reap His Bounty, as David and his friends realized. They experienced the
generosity of God. Throughout the centuries, as night follows day, enlightened mankind
has realized that disobedience to the Commandments, referred to as sin
(bad choices), blurs truth. It is deep, unrepentant sin that dulls the
voice of God in our awareness. A humble and contrite heart God will not
scorn. A repentant heart is God's Great Treasure. |
